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Remittances are Promoted for Development in El Salvador
Los Tiempos USA
March 24, 2005
Financial and Logistic Alliance from the United States
For the second year in a row, Salvadoran organization in the area will be able to finance their educational projects to benefit their communities of origin in El Salvador; for this, they will have to submit their proposals before May 15 to Manos Unidas, an alliance formed by Banco Agrícola de El Salvador and the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF).
Salvadoran organization in the Washington, DC and Los Angeles metropolitan areas will have until May 15th to submit their educational, health related, or school infrastructure proposals in their communities of origin receive between $10,000 and $25,000.
“Manos Unidas was created for the purpose of strengthening the impact of family remittances sent to El Salvador; supporting projects proposed by Salvadoran organizations, who are offered training sessions and resources, as well as the distribution and administration of the funds needed to implement the selected projects,” Amy Coughenour, director of the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), said during the informational press roundtable.
Program Manos Unidas por El Salvador is an alliance between Banco Agrícola de El Slvador, who will contribute $0.35 for each family remittance recieved, and PADF, who will control the use of the funds before, during, and alter the implementation of the projects in the beneficiary communities.
In its first year, the program helped to finance and implement six of the ten projects proposed. In this way, the communities of El Piche, San Vicente, Cacaopera, Chiquirín, El Tamarindo, and Chinameca were benefited.
“We estimate that the contributions made by the bank, PADF, and the organization add up to $240,000 each year, this will be used to finance the projects proposed in 2005,” mentioned Ernesto Magaña, director of businesses abroad for Banco Agrícola, an institution that moves $25 million worth of remittances each month.
The entities who wish to receive aid for their projects must fill out an application at the Pan American Development Foundation, 1889 F Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20006 and must be able to contribute a third of the total budget, the rest will be contributed by Manos Unidas. Selected projects will be announced on June 30th.
Community Voices
During the press roundtable, several representatives of Salvadoran Organizations were present to support the program and solicit aid from Manos Unidas.
“The biggest problem in El Salvador is education, we believe that the banking or financial institutions who are benefiting from the remittances must participate, on our part, we are helping implement these projects,’ mentioned Elmer Arias, president of the Salvadoran American Chamber of Commerce, integrated by 142 members in Virginia, Washington, and Maryland.
“Last year was the first time that we were benefited by the contributions from Salvadorans abroad and while our government should be looking after our needs, they are not doing it and it is our community who is helping us out,” said William Gutierrez from Piedras Balncas, a region benefited by ALCANCE, another Manos Unidas project.
On his part, a representative from Intipucá holds that they need help in bringing potable water to his community and that they are willing to tell other communities to submit proposals to improve the country, because the migration phenomenon which started in the 1980s has made El Salvador dependent on remittances.
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